Shells Alternatives for a Cloud Desktop or Cloud PC

Shells is a personal cloud computer: a Linux desktop, a browser in the cloud, or a cloud IDE that you open from any device. It is still on sale. The Shells pricing page lists three monthly plans with "unlimited use", from $14.95 for 1 CPU and 2 GB of memory up to $39.95 for 4 CPUs and 8 GB, and an option to build your own.

The six alternatives below fall into two groups. Shadow, Amazon WorkSpaces, Windows 365 and V2 Cloud rent you a desktop that someone else runs. Kasm Workspaces and Webtop put the same kind of browser-based desktop on a server you already pay for. Shells' low price for an always-on Linux box is hard to beat, so the picks are ordered by what you get for the extra money.

Prices below are as of November 6, 2026. Our method is on How we review tools.

Quick comparison

Shadow PC

Shadow rents one person a full cloud PC with an NVIDIA RTX GPU, aimed at gaming and 3D work. Where Shells gives you a light Linux box, Shadow gives you a machine that can run games at 1440p or render scenes. You connect from Windows, Mac, Linux, phones, tablets, Android TV, Apple TV, Chromebooks or a browser.

The offers page lists plans from $29.99 to $59.99 a month in the US, all without commitment. Storage is 256 GB or 512 GB depending on tier and can grow to 5 TB.

Best for: Gamers and 3D users who want a GPU in the cloud more than an always-on server.

Pricing:

• Neo Lite: $29.99 per month, 120 hours a month, sessions up to 4 hours
• Neo: $37.99 per month
• Power Lite: $43.99 per month
• Neo Pro: $44.99 per month
• Power: $54.99 per month
• Power Pro: $59.99 per month

Watch out for:

• Playtime is capped. The offers page lists monthly caps of 120 or 210 hours, sessions of 4 to 8 hours, and shutdown after 30 minutes idle on most tiers. Neo Pro and Power Pro include 210 hours plus an Always On option with 8-hour sessions.
• Storage, hours and idle rules differ by tier, so check which limits apply to your plan before you pay.

Official site: Shadow PC.

Amazon WorkSpaces

Amazon WorkSpaces is the most flexible way to rent a desktop by the month or by the hour. AlwaysOn bundles are a flat monthly fee; AutoStop bundles charge a small fixed fee plus an hourly rate and shut down when idle. The WorkSpaces Personal pricing page gives Oregon examples of $25 a month for Windows Value, $44 for Windows Standard, and $7.25 a month plus $0.66 an hour for an Ubuntu Power desktop.

New accounts get two Standard AutoStop desktops with 40 combined hours a month free for up to three months. That is enough to test a Linux desktop before you cancel Shells.

Best for: People who use a cloud desktop a few hours a week and want to pay only for those hours.

Pricing:

• Windows Value, AlwaysOn: $25 per month (Oregon)
• Windows Standard, AlwaysOn: $44 per month (Oregon)
• Ubuntu Power, AutoStop: $7.25 per month plus $0.66 per hour (Oregon)
• Free tier: 2 Standard AutoStop desktops, 40 combined hours a month, up to 3 months

Watch out for:

• Prices vary by region and bundle, and the page gives only examples, so you need the AWS Pricing Calculator for a real quote.
• Setup goes through the AWS console and a directory, which is far more work than signing up for Shells.

Official site: Amazon WorkSpaces. Our listing: Amazon WorkSpaces.

Windows 365

Windows 365 is Microsoft's own Cloud PC: a fixed-price Windows machine per user, opened through Windows App. The Business plans page lists 2 vCPUs, 8 GB and 128 GB for $36 per user a month, 4 vCPUs and 16 GB for $56, and 8 vCPUs, 32 GB and 256 GB for $108.80.

There is no hourly meter and no idle shutdown to plan around. Windows App connects to it from Windows, macOS, iOS, Android and a web browser.

Best for: Small companies that want Windows desktops in the cloud billed per user.

Pricing:

• 2 vCPU, 8 GB RAM, 128 GB: $36 per user per month
• 4 vCPU, 16 GB RAM, 128 GB: $56 per user per month
• 8 vCPU, 32 GB RAM, 256 GB: $108.80 per user per month
• Monthly subscription that auto-renews

Watch out for:

• It is for organisations. Microsoft's Windows App overview says you need a work or school account and that personal Microsoft accounts are not supported.
• It runs Windows only. Shells users who wanted a Linux desktop get nothing here.

Official site: Windows 365.

Kasm Workspaces

Kasm streams container-based Linux desktops and single apps, such as an isolated browser, to any web browser. That covers the Shells Linux desktop and browser-in-the-cloud jobs on hardware you control, from a home server to a cheap VPS.

The free Community edition is for individuals, nonprofits and testing, per Kasm's features matrix. Paid editions add unlimited sessions and session recording. Our Kasm Workspaces alternatives page covers the self-hosted options in more depth.

Best for: Self-hosters who want several Linux desktops and isolated browsers in a tab.

Pricing:

• Community: free, 5 concurrent sessions, support through GitHub issues
• Basic, Essentials and Premier: contact sales, no public price

Watch out for:

• Community stops at 5 concurrent sessions, and paid editions have no public price.
• You supply and maintain the server, so the real monthly cost is your VPS or home hardware.

Official site: Kasm Workspaces.

Webtop (LinuxServer.io)

Webtop is a free Docker image that runs a full Linux desktop and serves it to your browser on ports 3000 and 3001. You choose the distribution and desktop through the image tag. Since June 17, 2025 it streams with Selkies instead of KasmVNC, per the LinuxServer.io docs.

Run it on a small VPS and you have roughly what Shells Basic sells, for one user, at the cost of the server. GPU acceleration works with NVIDIA drivers 580 and later, though not on the Alpine images.

Best for: One technical user who wants a Shells-style Linux desktop on their own server for free.

Pricing:

• Free and open source
• You pay only for the host

Watch out for:

• No login by default. The docs say the container ships without authentication and with passwordless sudo, so put it behind a reverse proxy with a password before exposing it.
• It is one container per desktop with no user management, unlike Kasm.

Official site: Webtop (LinuxServer.io).

V2 Cloud

V2 Cloud sells managed cloud desktops to small businesses, with 24/7 support included. The pricing page groups plans by user type: Standard users from $60 a month, Heavy users such as developers from $110, and Power users for CAD or AI work from $240.

Plans include 50 GB of storage per user. GPU acceleration starts at $66 a month, dedicated IPs are $5 each, and there is a 7-day trial you can cancel any time.

Best for: Small offices that want someone else to run and support their cloud desktops.

Pricing:

• Standard Users: from $60 per month
• Heavy Users: from $110 per month
• Power Users: from $240 per month
• GPU acceleration: from $66 per month
• CloudCare Maintain: from $10 per VM per month

Watch out for:

• The prices are starting points only. V2 Cloud does not publish CPU, memory or minimums per plan, so you need sales for a firm quote.
• At $60 a month for the cheapest plan, it costs four times Shells Basic.

Official site: V2 Cloud.

How to choose

When to stay with Shells

Stay with Shells if you want an always-on Linux desktop for one person at $14.95 a month and do not want to run a server. No managed option here matches that price for unlimited use.

Frequently asked questions